Niger : Food Security and Safety Nets

World Bank

Washington, DC

关键词: ACCESS TO FOOD;    ACUTE MALNUTRITION;    AGRICULTURAL ACTIVITIES;    AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT;    AGRICULTURAL GROWTH;   

RP-ID  :  44072

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: World Bank Open Knowledge Repository

【 摘 要 】

Niger is a very poor country that facesserious problems of poverty and household food insecurity.With a per capita gross national income (GNI) of US$240 andan estimated 62 percent of the population living below thepoverty line, Niger is one of the lowest-ranked countries onthe United Nations' human development index. Reducingvulnerability and ensuring food and nutrition security is anoverarching priority for the Government. Maintaining foodsecurity at the national and household level is an importantpriority for developing countries in general, both for thewelfare of the poor and for political stability. In order toensure food security, governments have adopted variousstrategies, including efforts to increase staple food cropproduction, market interventions, and a variety of safetynet programs, especially during emergencies. In Niger, whereprofound vulnerabilities combined with a high level ofpopulation growth have resulted in endemic food insecurity,the Government is faced with a serious challenge. In thiscontext, the purpose of this study is to contribute to theexisting strategy and assist the Government in developing aholistic, multi-sectoral, and institutional approach toreducing the population's vulnerability to foodinsecurity. This report adds value to the ongoing policydiscussions in two ways: first, it presents new empiricalanalysis of: i) food insecurity and vulnerability ofhouseholds during the period of food crises as well asduring normal period, ii) the structure and integration ofcereal markets within Niger and with markets in neighboringcountries, and iii) causes of the 2005 food crisis, andlessons learned on implications of various levels ofcross-border flows between Niger and Nigeria. Second, itprovides concrete short- and medium-term recommendations forhelping government to improve the performance of existingprograms to increase food security, particularly related topreparedness for and responses to food crises, and to designefficient safety nets mechanisms for vulnerable population.